Dec. 22, 2007

Box Score

KINGSTON, R.I. -- Will Daniels and Kahiem Seawright each registered a double-double as Rhode Island cruised past Hofstra, 88-69, in the first game in two weeks for the Rams. The win was the sixth-straight for URI, who improved to 11-1 on the season.

Daniels led all scorers with 22, while grabbing a game and career-high 16 rebounds. He also had five assists and a blocked shot in 38 minutes of action. Seawright had 18 points and 13 boards, while also tallying three assists and two steals in 21 minutes of action. The Rhody frontcourt duo helped the Rams to a 52-40 advantage on the glass.

"We were excited to get out on the floor," said Seawright. "We were rusty - anyone would be after two weeks off - but we buckled down on defense and that was the key."

The Rams struggled from the floor to start the game, hitting just 3-of-7 to start, but started to find an offensive flow midway through the half. Joe Mbang's two free throws made it 25-15 with 9:22 left in the period, capping off an 18-9 over an eight-minute span. Rhody continued to build its lead - reaching as much as 18 points - and took a 47-29 lead into the break. URI shot 51.5% (17-33) in the first 20:00 of action.

"We knew our rebounding and defense would be important today," Daniels said. "But we were also able to get out and score on the fast break."

Daniels had already registered his double-double in the first half (14 points/10 rebounds) - the first Ram to do so since Sly Williams had 25 points and 11 rebounds in the first frame on Jan. 6, 1979 in a game versus Detroit.

In the second half, the Rams continued to build their lead. Two Daniels foul shots made it 64-41 with just under 14 minutes to go. But Hofstra - led by Antoine Agudio, the nation's leading scorer - would make a run. The Pride scored 10 unanswered points over the next 3:20, cutting the Rhody lead to 13 points - at 64-51 with 10:25 left. But that was as close at Hofstra would get and Rhody would extend its lead back to 20 points after Seawright connected on two from the charity stripe with 4:51 to go.

Jimmy Baron added 14 points and Keith Cothran 10 for the Rams, who shot just 42.0% (29-69) from the floor - the second-lowest shooting percentage of the season. Joe Mbang added six points and Lamonte Ulmer six rebounds off the bench.

Next up for Rhode Island is a matchup with Eastern Michigan in the first game of the Islander Invitational in Corpus Christi, Texas, on Dec. 28. The Rams and Eagles are set to tipoff at 6 p.m. ET..